


lay down your weary head (let me help you carry your burden)

by OnyxSphynx



Series: newmann one-shots [22]
Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-Operation Pitfall (Pacific Rim), am i projecting onto newt? studies say "yes"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-03
Packaged: 2019-11-08 21:57:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17989247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnyxSphynx/pseuds/OnyxSphynx
Summary: Newt's having an off day. Hermann does his best to help.





	lay down your weary head (let me help you carry your burden)

**Author's Note:**

> for the anon prompt: "Omg I was just thinking of a hurt/comfort prompt when I saw your thing! Newt knows people find him exhausting. Sometimes he just exhausts himself and Hermann helps get him out of his own head."

“Newton?” Hermann calls, eyes flicking over his equations. “Would you pass me the tablet on my desk?” When there’s no response, he frowns, and calls, “Newton? Are you alright there?” 

There’s silence yet again, and, worry mounting, Hermann turns, scanning the lab for his partner. The other side of the lab is silent, lacking the wet sounds of kaiju entrails and other miscellaneous bits and bobs being experimented on by Newton, or his chatter as he logs something on the recorder. Finally, he spies the other, laying flat on his back on the floor.

Hermann gnaws at his lip and climbs down from his perch on the ladder, grabs his cane from where it’s hanging, and makes his way over to Newton. The biologist is spread-eagle on the floor, somehow having found a patch of ground not covered in water or kaiju viscera, eyes closed. “Newton? Are you alright?” Hermann hazards.

For a moment, it seems as if Newt hasn’t heard him, before he lets out a deep sigh, and murmurs, voice dull, “Yeah, I…I’m just a bit overwhelmed.”

Hermann raises a questioning brow, even though the other can’t see it, and shifts so that he’s not putting as much weight on his leg. “What happened?”

There’s a moment of silence, and Newt’s eyes open partially, and he stares off blankly into the middle-distance. “I just…” he pauses and lets out another sigh. “’s just too much sometimes, y’know? Like, my head won’t stop…” he waves vaguely, drops his hands back to the ground by his side.

Hermann swallows. Carefully, he lowers himself down beside the biologist and reaches for one of his hands. Newt lets him take it, the limb limp against Hermann’s palm. He’s not sure what to say––they’ve been around each other for years, but  _comfort_ and  _care_ aren’t words people usually associate with Hermann, perhaps rightly so, given his general clumsiness with human interaction. He clears his throat. “Do you…do you want to talk about it?”

He’s not sure how the other will respond––if he’ll brush it off, tell Hermann to stop worrying, or burst into tears, but Newton looks…drained, the set of his jaw that of one trying to hold themselves together and get through a trying ordeal. Hermann contemplates saying something more, but nothing comes to mind.

There’s a pause, and then Newt turns his head slightly, adjusting his position. His hand grips Hermann’s. “It’s just one of those days where everything feels…too much,” he says softly. “And––I know I annoy other people by being, well,  _me_ , but sometimes I can’t keep up with myself. It’s…exhausting, like, I mean, my brain is going a million miles a second but I just…don’t have the energy to keep up,” he finishes sadly.

_One of those days_  means that Newt’s battling with a depressive episode; for all his seemingly endless energy, it all drains away in moments like these, leaving the other tired and looking every one of his dozen years spent trying to stop the Kaiju. Hermann rubs his thumb over Newt’s knuckles, purses his lips. “Ah,” he says, rather uselessly. “Is there anything I can…do to help?”

“I…” there’s a stunned silence, confusion furrowing Newton’s brow, as if the offer is one he’s never heard before. The thought makes Hermann’s heart ache. “No, just…can you stay with me for a bit?” Newt asks plantatively. 

“Of course, darling,” Hermann replies, the endearment slipping easily from his tongue, as it always does when in Newton’s presence. “Of course I will.” A small, tentative smile twitches at Newt’s lips, and he draws his hand away from Hermann’s momentarily, only to press it to his cheek. Though wordless, the simple gesture conveys a thousand words, and an answering smile tugs at Hermann’s lips. 

He adjusts his position so that he can sit comfortably on the cold floor, and nudges Newt, guiding the other’s head into his lap, carding his fingers through Newt’s hair, and watches fondly as the other’s eyes flutter and finally close, face serene as he drifts off to sleep.


End file.
